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NEED ADVICE ON PAYING DOWN CREDIT CARDS- make big payments or lots of small ones??

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Anonymous
Not applicable

Re: NEED ADVICE ON PAYING DOWN CREDIT CARDS

I'm embarrassed to say how much we owe - it is way out of control! The finance charges went really high and it just started adding up and up and up. As soon as I compile the list I will let you know. Maybe you can help us. Thanks!
Message 11 of 32
Anonymous
Not applicable

Re: NEED ADVICE ON PAYING DOWN CREDIT CARDS



cchappy wrote:
I'm embarrassed to say how much we owe - it is way out of control! The finance charges went really high and it just started adding up and up and up. As soon as I compile the list I will let you know. Maybe you can help us. Thanks!

DO NOT be embarrassed.  Practically everyone here is or was in the same boat.  I am sure there is someone with 10x as much debt as you.  No one here is judgmental but share only what info you are comfortable with.
Message 12 of 32
Anonymous
Not applicable

Re: NEED ADVICE ON PAYING DOWN CREDIT CARDS

Thanks! I want to be able to monitor my score - do you recommend a product? Once we pay some of the debt down I want to see when my score goes up so we can refinance that second to a fixed rate? Do any of the products offer to check my husband as well as my own scores?
Message 13 of 32
Anonymous
Not applicable

Re: NEED ADVICE ON PAYING DOWN CREDIT CARDS

This is a thread that discusses the various score/report monitoring products:
 
Message 14 of 32
haulingthescoreup
Moderator Emerita

Re: NEED ADVICE ON PAYING DOWN CREDIT CARDS

I would just add a point that might help convince your husband: once you make a payment on your balances, you're at the mercy of the credit card companies, and then of the credit bureaus, to update your reports. Most of the CCC's report the balance that shows on your statement on the date that the statement posts (reports, drops, etc), but then you have to wait on the CRA's. It used to be for me that EX updated that day or the next, and then TU a day or two later, and then EQ within about a week. But something is going on in TU land --they haven't updated a single one of my accounts since New Year's Eve, and others report no updates since earlier in December.

It would be a heart-breaker if you two paid down all your cards right before you needed your new scores, but no one bothered to update your reports. So for that reason alone, the earlier you pay, the safer.
* Credit is a wonderful servant, but a terrible master. * Who's the boss --you or your credit?
FICO's: EQ 781 - TU 793 - EX 779 (from PSECU) - Done credit hunting; having fun with credit gardening. - EQ 590 on 5/14/2007
Message 15 of 32
RobertEG
Legendary Contributor

Re: NEED ADVICE ON PAYING DOWN CREDIT CARDS- make big payments or lots of small ones??

Yes, I concur.  While there are discrepancies in reporting dates from the CCC's to the CRA's, they seem to be only a matter of days differences between their statement dates and their reporting dates.  These are, at the worst, only monthly iimpacts if one does not know the actual date of reporting to the CRA's.  For the most part, CCC's seem to report monthly.  However, I am hearing over and over again, especially with regard to TU, that reported data from the CCC's to the CRA's are not being promptly entered into their credit scores.  This is an outrage.  Their reported scores have great iimpact on consumers.  They sell their products to creditors as a current reflection of a consumer's score.  If they are neglligent in their services, I would suggest that the FTC investigate the reported service that they are registered to offer against their actual performance.  Gripping on forums, such as this, are cathargic, but we pay our taxes for an FTC to make sure that thier actions purport with both law and fairness. 
Message 16 of 32
Anonymous
Not applicable

Re: NEED ADVICE ON PAYING DOWN CREDIT CARDS



haulingthescoreup wrote:
It would be a heart-breaker if you two paid down all your cards right before you needed your new scores, but no one bothered to update your reports. So for that reason alone, the earlier you pay, the safer.

Ask your mortgage broker or lender about "Rapid Rescore".  If you pay a fee, you can get your reports updated right away.  It costs about $30 per TL per CRA.  Might be worth it if it boosts your score enough to get a better rate.
Message 17 of 32
Anonymous
Not applicable

Re: NEED ADVICE ON PAYING DOWN CREDIT CARDS

Thanks for that tip on the rapid rescore fee.
Message 18 of 32
MidnightVoice
Super Contributor

Re: NEED ADVICE ON PAYING DOWN CREDIT CARDS



cchappy wrote:
That is what I think - but now I just have to convince my husband that this is better.


Tell  him the secret to a happy marriage is two words - Yes dear.  Smiley Very Happy
 
And I am afraid that in this case he is not as right as you are - pay them down as fast as possible
The slide from grace is really more like gliding
And I've found the trick is not to stop the sliding
But to find a graceful way of staying slid
Message 19 of 32
RobertEG
Legendary Contributor

Re: NEED ADVICE ON PAYING DOWN CREDIT CARDS- make big payments or lots of small ones??

Clearly, from a monthly CC interest point of view, the best strategy would to be to pay ASAP to reduce the compound interest, and thus money out of your pocket.  Always the best course of action, if your budget permits it.  But disregarding the compounding monthly interest, which is the primary concern, and looking at it purely from a FICO strategy point of view, as has been pointed out by many others, %util has no history or memory.  You are only as good or bad as your last credit report when it is pulled as pertains to %util, and its iimpact on  your score.  Monthly FICO score monitoring, while addictive, only has  real meaning at the time when you actually apply for new credit. 
So I offer that the starting point for any FICO strategy is, "When do I plan to apply for new credit?"  If within the next few months, then pay down debt heavily and quickly to get % util down at the time you apply, and your report is pulled..  However, if you dont need new credit for six months or more, then spreading it out will get you to the same FICO without immediate outlays of bucho $, and will also add account aging into your score mix. Thus, the wise FICO strategy is not to simply seek rapid monthly score increases if one does not intend to apply for credit in those passing months. Plan  your strategy based upon when you need your FICO to actually apply for new credit, then make the payments to get  you to the desired %util at least a month or two before appling for new credit to ensure that your payments post with the CRA before they generate their report and score.  That is where you want to be, and the strategy that I recommend.


Message Edited by RobertEG on 01-25-2008 12:59 AM
Message 20 of 32
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